Although the
Memorial Chapel was built after the death of original architect
Ralph Adams Cram (1863-1942), it was constructed on the exact
spot that he had specified. Cram, a leading American architect,
was selected by the first Board of Directors to lay out the campus
and design the buildings.

Sweet Briar
College was founded in 1901 according to terms specified in the
will of Indiana Fletcher Williams. She wanted to establish an
institution of higher learning for young women in memory of her
daughter Daisy, who died in 1884 at the young age of sixteen.
Daisy was the only child of James Henry Williams and Indiana Fletcher
Williams. The land that Sweet Briar College was built on was inherited
by Indiana and her sister Elizabeth from their father Elijah Fletcher
upon his death in 1858.

The college
grounds, nestled in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains, have
changed little over the past century. The Chapel is one of many
additions to the campus, which had only four buildings when the
college opened in 1906. Built in 1966, the Chapel completes the
major axis of Cram's master plan, dominating the college's main
quadrangle. Interdenominational services are held each day in
the Chapel, which also hosts performances by visiting musicians,
the College Choir and the Sweet Briar Chamber Music group.

Sweet Briar
is ranked as one of the top liberal arts institutions in the nation.
About 600 women from more than forty states and twenty countries
are enrolled at Sweet Briar each year. The college boasts an exceptional
science program and outstanding study abroad opportunities.

Information
AccuracyThe information for the written description of each location has been carefully
researched by the authors and is believed to be accurate. New findings, however,
could make some information out-of-date. If you are a professional historian,
archaeologist, or architect, and have new information that you are willing to
share, please contact
Dianne Harrah
.